Ben Armstrong, Office of the Dean of Students, is one of two UT System nominees to the Texas Veterans Commission (TVC) committee that will work on transitioning Hazelwood from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to the Commission. If confirmed, Armstrong will help implement Senate Bill 1158, passed during the 83rd Regular Legislative Session and intended to make higher education campuses throughout Texas more veteran friendly.
Keith Arrington, Counseling and Mental Health Center (CMHC), was nominated by students and selected for an award by the Services for Students with Disabilities. This award acknowledges Keith’s contributions to students’ academic success at UT Austin and his efforts to create an inclusive environment for all individuals.
Sarah Baxter, CMHC, passed the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) Family Psychiatric & Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certification Examination. Sarah is now credentialed as a board certified Family Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP-BC).
Sylvia Chen, CMHC, was a featured presenter at the July 10 Association of International Educators online conference. Sylvia presented on the topic of “Addressing Mental Health Challenges on Campus” using three hypothetical case scenarios which international undergraduate Chinese students may face during their years of college in the U.S. Sylvia also participated afterwards in a “live chat” session with online conference participants.
Lynn Hoare, CMHC, was invited to present at the national American Alliance for Theatre and Education conference in Washington, D.C. in July. She spoke as part of a roundtable discussion featuring her article, “Challenging Facilitation: Training Facilitators for Theatre for Dialogue Programs,” recently published in the third edition of the internationally referenced book, Theatre And Education, published by Routledge. Lynn also presented Get Sexy. Get Consent. The one-hour interactive Theatre for Dialogue performance about negotiating boundaries around sex and consent has been a popular Voices Against Violence program on the UT Austin campus.
Rene Rodriguez, Housing and Food Service, presented “Renovation of Jester Dining Hall” with Scott Beardslee from Pfluger Architects and Lance Brooks from Foodservice Design Professionals at the National Association of College & University Food Service National Conference held in Minneapolis, Minn., on July 12. The team discussed methods to successfully conduct a $12.4 million dollar dining hall renovation without relocating students or closing facilities.
Sam Siner, Housing and Food Service, presented with a colleague from Texas A&M Commerce at the regional conference on “Coming in First: Supporting and Working with First-Generation College Students.”
Marian Trattner, CMHC, has been selected for an award from the Texas Suicide Prevention Council for her Leadership on University Campuses and in the Community in suicide prevention. In the five years since the Be That One (BT1) program was established, Marian and her team have advanced the cause of suicide prevention at UT Austin. Marian led the BT1 team in developing and implementing a comprehensive campus-wide suicide prevention plan. With her graduate students, she has trained thousands of students, faculty and staff in suicide prevention skills. Marian has also made Suicide Prevention Week an annual event on campus that attracts hundreds of people each year.
Jessica Hughes Wagner, University Health Services, will present at the August Generation Rx University Conference at Ohio State University on UT Austin’s “Study Natural” campaign and her prescription stimulant abuse prevention research.
Lindsay (Gaydos) Wilson, Housing and Food Service, presented a “Dietitian’s Roundtable: A discussion of nutrition trends including handling of allergens and the growing list of student requests” at FoodPro Users’ Conference 2013 on July 22 at The University of North Dakota.
“A Tip of the Hat to . . .”
…the Housing and Food Service conference, building services and food service teams who have hosted 15,000+ guests this summer, including six orientations for incoming students. The staff received this note from the Con Mi Madre Conference: “Thank you and your staff for all your efforts once again this year!! Our students, mothers, volunteers and staff were all very pleased with our stay at Jester. You all are amazing!!” And another note after the Summer Bridge Welcome Dinner organized by Undergraduate Studies: “I just want to express my gratitude for everyone’s assistance. Because of you all, yesterday was phenomenally successful. I am grateful that you all were dedicated to helping us create a beautiful event.”
…Littlefield Patio Café staff who received this comment from Annette M. Noorzad from ACES IT Group: “I have recently visited the Littlefield Patio Café and each time have had the made-to-order sandwiches. I was very pleasantly surprised and it was great to have a sandwich made to order. The sandwich was great (turkey on a spinach wrap). The staff were very friendly and I signed up for dine in dollars today. I plan to visit your Café many times more. Thanks for offering good food on campus (there are not many places like this around campus). I certainly will let my coworkers know too.”
… University Health Services staff who received this note from one of their patients: “I consider myself lucky to have been under your care. It’s thorough and hardworking doctors like you that give me an excellent example to follow after I graduate from medical school.”